Ditching and grading machine.



T. GILBERTSON.

DITCHING AND GRADING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.30. 1916.

T. GILBERTSON` mTcHmG AND GRADING MAcHmE. APPLICATlN FILED DEC.30. 19H5.

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nrcnrue AND GRADING MACHINE.

ySpeeiitcaton of Letters Patent.

Patented oet. 23,1917@ Application filed December 30, 1916. Serial No. 139,960.

To @ZZ whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, Trinononn GILBERTSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at yPelican Rapids, in the Vcounty of Ottertail and State of Minnesota, Vhave invented, a new. and useful Ditching and Grading Machine, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to ditching and grading machines, and the general object is to provide a machine of said class highly improved by the various features hereinafter described and pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of the improved machine. F ig. 2ris'aksectional 'side' elevation on the line a-a in Fig. 1 witha few parts omitted. Fig. 3 is a rear end view of the frame with a portion of the rear-most `frame bar broken away as between the points b-Z) in Figs.` 1 and 3. Fig. et is an enlarged sectionalside elevation on the line c-c in Fig. 1 with the plow omitted. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the plow frame shown in Fig. 4, with the plow added. Fig. 6 is a bottom view of a portion of the main frame, showing the gear ar rangement by which the main axle is eX- tended and contracted. Fig. 't' is a right 'hand end view of Fig. G ,with 'frame in nor mal position. Fig. `8 is a rear sectional view on the line cZ-fZ in Fig. '5, Fig. 9 is an enlarged side elevationi of the left front corner 'of the machine showing the structure of the front corner casters and the draft arrangement. Fig. 10 `is an enlarged rear portion of Fig. 2. Fig. 11 is a right end view oit the rope drum by which the plow is raised and lowered.l F ig, l2 is a side elevation of the bail by which the left end section of the transverse rear conveyer is raised and lowered. Fig. 18 is an enlarged left hand side view of the longitudinal conveyer of the machine. Fig. lt is a right hand end View of Fig. 13.

Referring to the drawingby reference numerals, 1 designates the main frame of the machine, the same 1s mounted on Utwo front casters 2, 2, and two 'supporting lstitute a rack. ,The racksjthusy formed are veingaged by a pinion 8 ixed on a vertical shaft 9 having a hand wheel 10, (see Fig. 2) the turning of which will Vthus cause the ground wheels to be spread vor closed as may be desired for digging wide or narrow ditches.l Y

The machine may be drawn by draft animals `hitched* to swingle trees 11 having double-trees l2 attached one to each end .of a'chain 13, which extends across the front of the frame and is guided by sheaves 14, the. latter being mounted in `brackets l (best shown inFig. 9), secured at 16 to the front corners of the frame and `of such construction ythat they form bearings for. vertical bolts 18, on whose lower ends'are `journaled the forks 19 Vof the caster wheels 2. This constructionenables .the chain or cable 13 to both pull at the lower end of Athe bolt 18 where the pull is mos't desired, and kalso to thereby supportV the caster bracket against rearward strain when the machine is moving forward. i

The .digging is done by a plow or shovel 20 having a landside 21 and sloping knives 22 and braces 23, all secured to a. yoke shaped plow frame 24. Said plow :trame has its front end provided with a 'preferably hollow upright 25, steadied by a brace 26 which extendsV fromtthe upper end thereof to a cross bar 27 of the plow frame.

In Fig. et is best shown howf the main frame may be made of channel `iron, in whose adjacent side grooves 28 are mounted to roll anti-friction rollers 29` on studs at the frontend rear ends yof a plow-supporting yoke-shaped frame 30. To-the front end of said frame are secured two'brackets '31 which loosely embrace the front bar A1a va cable drum 36, located within the frame v8() and having wound upon it two cables 37, `which are guided over sheaves A38K mounted in frame 30, and extend'thence downward and are attached one to each end of the plow frame. l' Y f Secured yon one end of the shaft 34:* is a sprocket 39 driven'by a` chain 40 and a' said hand wheel will raise and lower thev plow frame regardless of its position toward either side of the main frame. ln order to hold the cable drum or double drum with the plow frame at the desired elevation, one end of the drum is provided with notches el?) (see Fig. ll) for a dog lo, (see Fig. l) pivoted at li' to engage with one end' when the other end is pressed outward by a spring 48. Said dog is disengaged by pulling on a cord 49, the idle part of which may be coiled upon a peg` or hook 50.

The plow carrying' frame or carriage 30 is at each end attached to a chain 5l, which.

vis guided over sheaves 52 and opera-ted by sprockets 53 fixed on a shaft 5e, which in bearings 55 extends in longitudinal direction of the main frame and is provided with a sprocket 56, rotated by an endless chain 57 andV a. sprocket 58 fixed on a shaft 59 journaled in a post 60 and having ay hand wheel 61. Pivoted at 62 (see Fig. 2) to the rear end of the plow is the forward end of an endless eonveyer 63, whose rear end always remains above the ground so as to convey the earth from. the plow onto a transverse rear conveyer 6l, which discharges the earth or dirt upon the ground beyondrthe left side of the machine. The latter con- "veyer is supported from the main frame by l0) which are guided on the adjacent side bar Gajof the rear conveyer Gil, and are provided with antifriction rollers 73 moving in the channel 74 of said bar. The upper ends of said hangers are slidably suported on a frame bar 7dand are engaged to ide moved by a chain 75, which is suitably guided by pulleys like 76 in Fig. l() and ,driven by a sprocket 77 fixed on the shaft 5l so that the main conveyer moves laterally with the plow Whenever the latter is moved by turning' of the hand wheel 6l.

rlhe roller '.78 of the main conveyer is slidably keyed on the shaft'Tl and said shaft .is providedV with a pulley 79, driven by a belt SO from a clutch pulley 8l loose on the shaft of an engine 82 which is mounted upon the main frame, and is provided with a clutch member 83 controlled by a shifter 84, fulcrumed at 85 and shiftable into two notches 86, S7, kof a segment S8, so Las to start and stop the conveyer while the engine is running. Gn the conveyor shaft 71 is lined a niitergear 89 meshing with a m1- tergear 90 liXed on'the roller 64b of the rear conveyor, whereby the two conveyors are driven in unison and at equal speed.

In order that the plow may be raised and lowered without interfering with the position and elevation of the rear end of the main conveyer, the latter conveyer is made automatically extensible as shown in Figs. 13 and le, where it will be seen that the conveyer frame is composed of two sections 63, 63h, slidable one in the other; section 63at having ateach side a slot 63C, the edges of which guide antifriction rollers 91 rotatably mounted on studs 92 upon the innersection 63h. 9d are arched braces to reinforce the boards weakened by the slots or deep notches 63C. Across the underside of the section V63 is journaled a roller 93 and inside the section 63h is journaled roller 94. The endless conveyer canvas 63d is placed over the end rollers 78, 78a and back and forth over the rollers 93 and 94E Vin the manner shown in f Fig. 13, with the result that the canvas is always kept stretched and thelength of its upper run will be automatically changed as the plow works near the surface or at different depths below the surface.

In the building of the machine it isobviously immaterial whether the shaft 54: be placed above or below or-through the main frame7 and whether the plow carrying frame npported in the main frame proper or in transverse channel bars secured underneath said frame. Also the rear bar 74: may be secured to the underside of the main frame if so desired; all of such and similar changes consider as mechanicalequivalents of the ,arrangement shown and thus coming within the scope and spirit of my invention.

The operation of the machine is already fairly clear from the foregoing specilication;

Ylirst cut and as they machine is driven alternately in the opposite direc-tions along the road the plow is moved over laterally at each turn of the machine until the rst layer is removed, the plow is then lowered and the operation repeated until the `desired depth is reached and the road or trench thus com'- pleted, when the plow is raised above the Y ing said plow-carrier yframe sidewise in either direction, a plow frame adjustafolyy suspended below said carrier frame andihaving a vertical standard slidable in the front tating about horizontal axes and guiding theJ part of the plow-carrier frame, and means front and rear sides of the standard, and a lo carried by the plow carrier frame for raisslanting brace extending from the upper end ing and lowering the plow frame, said plow of the Standard to the near portion of the carrier frame extending forward above and plow frame.

below the front cross bar of the main frame In testimony whereof I aix my signature. and having there antifriotion rollers against said front frame bar and grooved rollers ro- THEODORE GILBERTSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the "Commissioner of Patents, Washington, ID. G. 

